A FLYBRIDGE FOR ALL REASONS
The Ferretti 780 sleeps eight in luxury and is perfectly at home cruising the harbour or exploring the Andaman.
There’s just something about a big, heavy motor yacht. Sheer presence, for one.The Ferretti 780 has that in spades although there is a lot more to this boat than its regal profile. Out on the water on this sunny but gusty January morning, the 780 cruises along serenely and cuts through the chop like the proverbial knife through butter.The Ferretti 780 doesn’t just look stately, it also feels reassuringly stable. It’s going to take a lot more than a strong breeze to unravel this 65-tonner.
The Ferretti 780 is, at the same time, not so large that one could not commandeer it with a PPCDL if one chose to. At 24-meters LOA, it is right on the limit of the basic pleasure craft license. But why bother? Much better to leave the ship-handling duties to the pros and focus on what’s important – enjoying the fruits of your success.
This is incredibly easy to do on the Ferretti 780. Step aboard and the yacht oozes fine grained wood, mirrored-steel surfaces, and Poltrona Frau furniture. Inside the main deck, guests are greeted by a living area furnished with a freestanding L-shaped sofa and a dining table for eight. Located amidship on the starboard side is the multifunctional and configurable galley, a concept reflecting a new design ethos for large Ferretti yachts.
A sliding door at port, across from the galley, leads below deck.The standard layout features four cabins, all with ensuite bathrooms. As with the main deck, there is plenty of walnut wood and an even greater emphasis on stainless steel surfaces. Fine fabric cladding line the walls and ceilings.
The master stateroom amidship is spacious and flooded with natural light, thanks to the large windows.Two doubles with single beds are located on port and starboard sides while a VIP cabin forward, completes the ensemble.The crew quarters, accessed via the cockpit, are located at the stern and contain a cabin for the captain and one for crew, each with two beds and a personal bathroom.
The focal point of a boat like this is, of course, the flybridge – prime real estate for socialising and soaking up the sun and sea. On the Ferretti 780, the spacious flybridge can be fitted with a hard-top with either a fixed, glass-insert or a system of panels that open.The generous area sheltered by the hard-top spans a dining area on the left and a bar unit at starboard facing a multifunctional space that can be transformed into a rear-facing sun pad.
It’s evident that the space has been curated to ensure a thoughtful mix of communal and personal spaces, allowing guests the liberty to come together or to retreat to pockets of privacy when desired.To this end, the aft section is fitted with sun loungers and poufs while at the front, the helm station at port features Poltrona Frau seats and additional sun loungers at starboard.
What is particularly noteworthy about the Ferretti 780 is the sheer abundance of private, luxurious and scattered relaxation space outdoors, aboard the vessel. For example, in addition to the aforementioned flybridge, there is also a lounge up front on the main deck, furnished with a U-shaped sofa and a huge central sun pad, not unlike the kind found on a maxi-yacht. At the stern, two sections of the rear door can be lowered to create a sun deck at the water’s edge, complete with two large accompanying sun pads.
It is all well and good that the Ferretti 780 handles day cruises impeccably.
As an offshore-capable vessel, this boat is nonetheless made for longer, more challenging voyages. Helping power the vessel through storm and high water are twin MAN engines, available in twin 1,400-hp or 1550-hp engine options. Fitted with the former, the Ferretti 780 is good for approximately 310 nautical miles at 24 knots, before its 5,000-litre diesel tanks run dry.
As a premium yacht, the Ferretti 780 understandably brims with tech, in particular manoeuvring aids. An integrated loop system from Naviop-Simrad controls the main propulsion, navigation, monitoring and home-automation functions. An electro-hydraulic, steer-bywire system, co-developed with Xenta, provides enhanced rudder manoeuvrability and finely tuned turn-optimisation in all sea conditions. There is also the option of manoeuvring by joystick, something likely to dramatically lower pilot stress levels in tight, confined quarters.Throw in DPS (Dynamic Positioning System) functionality into the mix, which ensures the boat remains in the same position, even in strong winds or currents, and suddenly, preparing a 78-footer for mooring, refuelling or waiting for a bridge to open, is no longer half as taxing as it used to be.
For more information on the Ferretti 780, visit www.hongsehmarine.com.sg.